


No Use Crying Over Spilled Pie

by Flufflybunnypants



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Fix-It, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, One damp Jack Zimmermann coming right up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-26
Updated: 2016-09-26
Packaged: 2018-08-17 08:43:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8137646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flufflybunnypants/pseuds/Flufflybunnypants
Summary: Jack needs Bitty to understand how far he'd go to make him happy.





	

 Eric says, “Can we talk?” and Jack nearly swallows his tongue.

“Wait. Please wait, crisse, please don’t break up with me over the phone,” Jack begs, white knuckling the steering wheel.

“No, honey, I’m not, I wouldn’t do it over the phone,” Bitty rushes to reassure him, but Jack can hear his choked voice and he knows he doesn’t have much time. 

“I love you.” He puts the phone on speaker and drops it into the cup holder with trembling hands. 

He puts the car in reverse as Bitty says, “I know--”

“No, I love you. I love you so much that I can’t understand what I ever did to deserve you. You say my name and I feel so damn blessed to have you in my life. You bring so much joy and warmth into my life. You are everything to me.”

“Well, I’m not hockey,” Bitty says and perhaps he meant it as a joke but it comes out so painfully sad that Jack nearly misses the freeway on ramp.

“No, you’re not. If I had to pick between never stepping on the ice again and never getting to hold you again, I’d burn my fucking skates right then and there.”

“Jack,” Bitty protests. “I’m not asking you to choose.”

“No,” Jack says thoughtfully, “I don’t think you ever would. You’re too busy making sure everyone around you is happy to put yourself first. Have I made you feel like you’re not a priority? Do you think there is anything I wouldn’t do for you?”

“I understand that your career is important, I’m just having a little trouble.”

He’s minimizing and that more than anything tells Jack how much this is hurting him. “Talk to me, mon p’tit coeur.”

“I just, it’s hard to keep everything a secret. I can’t talk about you without lying. I’m no good at subterfuge and I can’t handle how stressful it is to constantly be watching my words.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault! Oh lord, my hands are shaking.” There’s a quiet clatter as he puts his phone down somewhere. “I don’t ever want to jeopardize your life. I keep quiet when we Skype so no one in the Haus can overhear and I protect my phone like it’s got nuclear codes on it and I’m not dealing well with that level of stress. I said ‘honey’ the other day and I think Lardo heard and I cried in my room for an hour.”

Jack is silent for a long moment, watching the windshield wipers brush away the heavy rain. “Bud, this can’t go on.” Bitty’s breath hitches painfully and Jack hurries to add, “What can I do to make things okay?”

“I don’t...it’s hard hiding even in my home.”

“You need to talk to people, huh?”

“Yeah,” Bitty sighs.

“I’ve been wanting to ask if I can tell someone too. It’s hard being away from you and faking every time someone teases me publicly about having a girlfriend.”

Bitty sniffles. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, here I am dumping on you like you don’t have problems too. Oh crap, you probably want to get home instead of standing in an airport having this conversation. Call me back when you get home, okay?”

“Uh, I can call you in like half an hour?” Jack’s a little thrown, but he _would_ prefer not to do this while on the phone.

“Sure.”

“I love you, Bits.”

“I love you too. Drive safe!” The phone clicks off and goes dark.

Jack’s entire body is tense as drawn wire. He pushes the gas pedal to the floor and goes as fast as he dares on the rain-slick roads. There are a couple times his wheels lose traction but he holds grimly onto the wheel and manages to not crash. He’s rehearsing every possible scenario in his head the whole drive.

He slows down once he hits the Samwell exit, driving at a reasonable pace to the college. Frat Row is full of cars, something going on at the LAX house, so he has to park a fair distance away. He walks through the rain, slipping in his dress shoes all the way to the Haus. He doesn’t feel the hard rain or the stinging wind, focused as he is on the warm, butter-yellow glow of the Haus.

He strides up to the door and knocks loudly. Ransom opens the door and his jaw drops. 

“Where’s Bitty?”

“Upstairs. I think he’s taking a shower Uh--”

Jack walks straight past him and up the stairs. Behind him, five heads pop up in astonishment. 

\-------------------------------------------------------------

Shitty calls after him. “Jack?” He moves to go after him, but Ransom and Lardo tackle him down and Lardo sits on him to keep him down. She pets his hair absently as she says, “I think this is important. Let’s give them space.”

“Shit, you think Jack finally figured out Bitty likes him?” Holster looks simultaneously worried and elated. He’s got $30 on a dramatic getting together story.

Ransom settles on the couch next to Chowder. “I just hope whatever it is doesn’t fuck Bitty up worse. He has actual bags under his eyes.”

“Do you think Jack will hurt him?” Nursey has a healthy amount of awe and fear regarding Jack Zimmermann, and a serious fond spot for Bitty.

“He wouldn’t,” Chowder insists. He loves them both and has $50 on them being unbelievably, fantastically in love with each other.

\------------------------------------------------------------- 

The shower is indeed running when Jack gets upstairs, but Bitty’s normal shower radio sounds are noticeably absent. He sits gingerly on Bitty’s desk chair, suddenly aware of how sodden his clothes are.

Sitting there in silence, the adrenaline fades. He realizes he might not even be welcome here. He’s working himself into a tizzy when the door opens.

He looks up through his dripping bangs to see Bitty in pajama pants and one of Jack’s old Samwell t-shirts.

Bitty goes pale and grabs the doorframe. “Jack?”

“I had to see you.”

“Oh my god. Honey, you’re drenched. What did you do, run here?” He’s slightly hysterical and Jack shrinks a little in the face of Bitty’s shocked expression.

“If you want me to go, I--”

“No!” Bitty launches himself at Jack as Jack stands. Jack is thankful for hockey muscles, because they allow him to catch his boyfriend and not fall on his ass.

“I wanted to see you,” he amends, holding Bitty tightly. It might very well be the last time he’s able to do so.

“I can’t believe you came. Did I sound that bad on the phone? You didn’t have to come down, you must be exhausted!”

“I told you to call if you needed me. And,” he takes a fortifying breath, “if we’re gonna tell people, I want a say in how I come out.”

“Oh, Jack,” Bitty ekes out, tears starting again. “Sweetheart, I never ever meant to force you out of the closet.” He looks up at Jack and gently cups Jack’s face in his hands.

“You didn’t. I’m choosing this. “Let’s tell the Haus. Not the whole team, but the ones who actually knew me before. They’re my friends, right?” He can hear the uncertainty in his own voice and it embarrasses him.

“Yeah,” Bitty whispers. “Yeah, they’re _our_ friends. If you want to do this, you can choose who you want to tell. This is entirely in your hands.” Jack remembers Shitty telling him about Bitty coming out and how hard it was. He has to kiss Bits that very moment because he is consumed with love for him. 

“But, uh, if we’re doing this,” Bitty laughs wetly, “we might want to get you into dry clothes first.”

“Yeah, yeah that’s probably a good idea.”

Jack ends up in an old pair of his sweatpants and one of his Falc hoodies he didn’t even know Bitty stole. Bitty has to change again because his clothes seem to have absorbed nearly half of the water from Jack’s clothes.

They walk downstairs together. Bitty’s eyes are still red and puffy, and Jack’s hair is an irredeemable damp mess. The living room is still full of their friends, all talking quietly. They go silent when Jack and Bitty walk in.

“So,” Jack begins awkwardly, “Haus meeting.”

They watch him, eyes flicking to Bitty and back.

“I have something to say. I’m not sure it’s fair to do this, but this cannot go further than you guys. I need you to keep this secret for me.” Everyone nods and Lardo gives him a soft smile. “I wanted to let you all know, I’m not dating a girl.” His eyes seek out Shitty, who has the grace to look guilty. “I’m dating Bitty.”

The room erupts in cheers, startling Jack. Their friends swarm in, hugging them and congratulating them, and Jack almost can’t breathe. This won’t fix all their problems, but Bitty is glowing like the sun and Jack wouldn’t trade the world for this. With this much support and love, he knows Bitty will have someone to depend on even when Jack’s halfway across the country. 

Bitty turns to Jack and smiles radiantly. “I’m so proud of you. Do you see how much they love you?” He pulls Jack closer. “I love you. Everyday, you know, I love you.”

“I love you too, Bits. Je t’aime toujours.”

Bitty blushes the way he always does when Jack speaks French to him. It’s beautiful. They escape back upstairs and get lost in each other, feeling as though time is standing still for them.

They miss Ransom’s carefully orchestrated, Excel-documented bet payoffs. Chowder makes mad bank.

**Author's Note:**

> This was written super fast, so if there are grammatical or spelling errors, let me know!


End file.
